13. The centre’s gone. Media is at the beginning, middle and end

What was true yesterday is often even more true today. Few of the original Shared Beliefs demonstrates this as potently as the need for media to be ‘at the centre and not at the end’.

Creativity is indeed the crux of modern advertising but it has shifted further – it’s the beginning, middle and end. The scaffolding, the bricks and mortar, the front door and key. Omni-channel launching points have made advertising much more personal, ubiquitous and fluid, particularly because different platforms behave so differently.

Building the communications structure is important even before the creative agency gets briefed

The chaotic fluidity of today’s digitised and disrupted market means each phase of a campaign requires a reassessment of who the audience is, what their desires are, how, where and why they will engage with a brand, what assets are most valuable and to whom. Not just to create something for launch but pre-launch, testing promoted posts on social media channels, for instance.

The canvas upon which creatives express themselves is in play from the very beginning, adapted with greater specificity throughout according to the channel, need and audience. Building the communications structure is important even before the creative agency gets briefed.

Never has there been such a proliferation of media, which means that never has there been a greater need to be media-thinkers at all stages of the process. To make the most of the myriad channels and connections, integrating disparate elements more effectively than was perhaps done in the past, tailoring messages to more specific contexts, and understanding with clarity how different channels can propel your advertising.